Tag: Zach

I don’t think there is a more under-appreciated player in the NBA than LaVine. After a lost 2023-24 season shortened by injury, the 6-foot-5 guard is back to being a terrific, efficient scorer and playmaker. LaVine is averaging 24.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists. He’s shooting 51.4 percent from the field, 45 percent from 3 and 81.6 percent from the line while carrying an under-talented Chicago Bulls team to the Play-In race. It’s gotten even more ridiculous over his last 13 games as he’s averaged 28.7 points while shooting 53.8 percent from the field, 48.2 percent from 3 and 81.3 percent from the line. There’s a real case he’s been one of the top scoring guards in the league this season.

He can play both on and off the ball but is best as an off-ball scorer because his decision-making isn’t always the best. He’s successful off the ball because he’s an elite catch-and-shoot player. However, on the ball, LaVine is also a legitimate three-level scorer, and that matters in the playoffs, when defenses tighten up and things get tougher. Defensively, LaVine has been pretty good this year on the ball despite Chicago’s overall defense being atrocious. You do have to protect him and be aware of him off the ball, as he can get lost. But he hasn’t been a severely negative defender for a couple of years now.

And yet, just because he’s been an unstoppable offensive force this season, it doesn’t make him the most valuable trade asset listed here. The issue for LaVine is financial. The two-time All-Star makes $43 million this year and has two additional years for a total of $95 million. Even with his play so far, he’s still probably overpaid, but it’s not by a significant margin. Additionally, in-season salary-matching can be quite difficult for players who make this much money, especially when the Bulls would likely want at least some version of expiring salary. If LaVine is moved, Bulls fans shouldn’t expect a king’s ransom despite him proving again this season that he still has an awful lot of game.

McCollum is up to his usual tricks this season, averaging 22.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists on 45 percent from the field and 37 percent from 3. However, he’s been on a hot streak. Over his last 13 games, McCollum has averaged 25.5 points while shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 43 percent from 3. At 33, he’s still an effective scorer and a terrific player offensively. Defensively, there are still limitations because of his size and lack of foot speed. He generally gives effort on that end, but there’s only so much that can be done. But McCollum is lethal in the midrange and uses his change-of-pace dribble incredibly well to be deceptive to other ballhandlers. He remains a superb pull-up shooter, and if he gets some space, he feels automatic when he’s in a rhythm.

Why would the Pelicans consider moving him? Three reasons. First, because of catastrophic injuries this season, the team is near the bottom of the West. The second reason is just a matter of price. The Pelicans are currently over the luxury tax line and should assuredly look to get underneath that mark. Also, the team is about to get more expensive than it already is next season, as Trey Murphy III’s extension will kick in. The team has $157 million committed to just nine players, and that’s without Brandon Ingram’s cap hold included if they have to hold onto him beyond the deadline. With the salary cap projected at around $154 million, it makes a lot of sense for the Pelicans to look into opening up some flexibility. McCollum has one year left after this one at $30.6 million, a salary that is a bit more than the value he brings to the table but not egregious. The third reason is that he and Zion Williamson might push the Pelicans too far toward respectability in what is already a lost season. The Pelicans have won five of their last six games.

The Pelicans could easily avoid the luxury tax by moving a couple of their back-end rotation guys and punt these problems to the summer. But given their situation, expect everything to be on the table to this front office.

Beal is still a valuable basketball player, but he just happens to be paid an exceptional amount of money for a player who is no longer an All-Star. He makes $50.2 million this season and has two years, $111 million locked beyond this season. I asked five executives, “What would Beal get in free agency if he were available in free agency this summer?” The answers ranged from $25 million to $35 million per year. Count this one as another win for Mark Bartelstein and Priority Sports, an agency with a long track record of getting clients paid handsomely.

Three other factors beyond that make trading Beal incredibly complicated. First, he has a no-trade clause, meaning he can reject any deal he’s presented with if it doesn’t suit him. Second, the Suns are over the second apron by a significant margin, which means the Suns can’t aggregate players in a deal along with Beal to make his contract more palatable. Finally, the team has limited draft capital to trade.

But the Suns would like to shake up their roster in a big way, and Beal is the only mechanism outside of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker that would allow them to make a move for Jimmy Butler. However, to get Butler, the Suns would need to find a third team that would be willing to take Beal, as the Heat are believed to have no interest in taking Beal’s contract back for Butler. The Suns have shifted Beal to the bench, and he hasn’t played poorly in a vacuum this season, averaging 17.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 38.6 percent from 3. He’s also shown increased attention to detail and effort on defense. However, he’s a bit small for this roster, and it’s hard to create lineups that are successful with him, Durant, Booker and another guard. It would probably behoove the Suns to be able to move on from Beal, but it’s going to be hard to find a landing spot for him, even in a deal for Butler.

Bogdanović is a little older than you think, having turned 32 over the summer. He dealt with some injuries to start the year, and the stats are down because of that. He’s averaging just 10 points on 38.2 percent shooting from the field and 31.3 percent from 3. He doesn’t totally fit the Hawks’ new age timeline, and several teams would love to get a player like Bogdanović, who has a proven big-game track record on the international stage. He averaged about 16 points per game coming into this season in his four years with the Hawks.

Bogdanović’s contract is also one that works well if you believe in his body holding up. He’ll make $17.2 million this season, then has $16 million on the books for next year and a team option for 2026-27 at $16 million. As long as he gets back to the level he was at before this season — he just averaged 18 points per game on excellent shooting splits for Serbia at the Olympics over the summer while helping them to a bronze medal, so there’s no reason to believe he’s fallen off when completely healthy — Bogdanović is a good player on a good contract.

Still, Bogdanović’s injury history is real. This year, he’s dealt with a right hamstring injury as well as right knee inflammation that has held him out of competition. The knee is the one that teams will want more information on, as he’s had a couple of issues with that in the past, including an avulsion fracture in early 2021 and surgery before the 2022-23 season after having dealt similarly with inflammation issues.

Brown is back in the lineup for the Raptors and doing his typical thing off the bench, providing tough defense, some ballhandling and sharp cutting. The 2018 second-round pick is a proven winner, having played a critical role on the NBA champion Denver Nuggets in 2023 as the team’s sixth man. He played the third-most minutes on the team in the regular season and was one of the team’s six main players during its playoff run, providing quick ball movement, quick processing and decision-making, plus very high-level defense across multiple positions. He’s an interesting player type in that he can play power forward on offense but also shift up on defense and defend at the point of attack or take on bigger wings with how physical he is. He continued to showcase that skill set last year after signing a contract with Indiana and being traded midseason in the Pascal Siakam trade to Toronto. The only real flaw with Brown’s game as a role player is that he’s an inconsistent shooter who doesn’t get guarded regularly on the perimeter in catch-and-shoot situations. Other than that, he’s effective across the board.

The issue for Brown moving at the deadline, though, is that contract he signed with the Pacers. It was essentially a two-year, $45 million balloon payment deal to get him to sign. The Raptors picked up the team option this past offseason, and his salary is $23 million. That’s a big number for salary-matching purposes midseason. Still, I bet someone will make the move. The team that should strongly consider it is the Lakers, given that they desperately need help on the perimeter defensively and considered Brown last offseason before the Pacers came over the top and blew their offer out of the water. They have several mid-tier contracts they can use to get to Brown’s level and should be willing to give up a well-protected first-round pick to acquire him given his potential fit. Even with Dorian Finney-Smith, Brown’s defense is a strong fit.

Sexton is having another strong offensive season, averaging 18.3 points on 60 percent true shooting. That’s right in line with his numbers since he’s been in Utah. Sexton has never been a high-volume 3-point shooter, preferring to drive and attack the basket. However, he continues to make more than 40 percent of his 3s. He doesn’t have amazing vision as a passer, but he’s cut out a large number of the poor shots he used to take in Cleveland by just being willing to involve his teammates a bit more. He’s more of an undersized scoring guard as opposed to a point guard, but he can handle the ball and get you into your sets. The issues come on defense, where Sexton is a feisty defender against opposing small guards but has very little ability to slide up the lineup onto bigger opponents. He’s also not an active help defender in any way, shape or form. Even though he is aggressive on that end, he typically grades out in most metrics as a negative defensive player. One other note is that he’s known to be highly competitive. His effort and engagement are always going to be quite high.

If you’re looking for offense from the backcourt, Sexton is probably the best bet below the $20 million salary point. He makes $18.4 million this season and has another year remaining at $19.2 million. I wouldn’t call his deal a bargain, but if you think you can get him into your scheme defensively and help minimize his weaknesses (something Utah cannot do starting him next to another small guard in Keyonte George), it’s probably about right for the value he could bring. Sexton seems to be more in line with the price point that Terry Rozier got last season than someone like Dennis Schröder, who returned a net of two second-round picks plus Reece Beekman on a two-way contract. It wouldn’t stun me to see the Jazz get the equivalent of a late first-round pick back for Sexton if they moved him. There aren’t a significant number of playmaking guards out on the market, and Sexton just turned 26.

One of the best stories in basketball, Ball is back to playing after having missed 1,082 days because of knee issues. When he’s been on the court, he’s been extremely valuable despite pedestrian numbers. He’s averaging 6.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists, but the level to which the Bulls are better when he’s on the court is drastic. When Ball is off the court, the Bulls lose their minutes by 5.5 points per 100 possessions. When he’s on the court, they win their minutes by 9.5 points. Largely, that’s because Ball is excellent at moving the ball and keeping the offense in flow while also being a terrific defensive player. He plays hard defensively and consistently displays unbelievable anticipation on the court. His feel for the game hasn’t gone away despite the time off.

Why would he be potentially available? Ball is on an expiring contract worth $21.4 million before becoming an unrestricted free agent. The Bulls are thought to be very happy with Ball and love having him around the team for his presence in the locker room. But he will be able to leave for nothing if he wants to this offseason. On top of that, it’s unclear whether Ball can play a full schedule. He has not played in back-to-backs this season and has yet to log more than 26 minutes in a single game (although it’s worth that his minute load has gone up as the season has progressed). That probably points him toward being more of a high-impact bench player long-term.

Several teams contending for a title this year would love a player like Ball. However, his high salary might make it somewhat difficult to construct a trade that satisfies the Bulls’ goals. One spot I love for him is Detroit, where his style of play would fit incredibly well with Cade Cunningham. They have several second-round picks at their disposal and a Tim Hardaway Jr. contract that potentially matches Ball’s salary well. He’d be the perfect secondary ballhandler for the team with Jaden Ivey out indefinitely with his broken leg, and his expiring deal wouldn’t impact the team’s backcourt long-term.

Simons is one of the more difficult evaluations in the league. He has shown the ability to be an extremely explosive scorer, averaging 18.2 points per game. However, this season hasn’t been as clean, as he’s dealt with a couple of minor injuries, including an illness and a right-hand sprain.

After starting the season in his first 25 games with a true shooting percentage that was 10 points below league average, he’s now up around league average again. He also has real defensive deficiencies that cloud his game. On a good team, Simons might be more of a great sixth man as opposed to a definite starter. It’s possible he could find the right team and role that allows him to be a starter, especially during his massive hot streaks. But that consistency has been a bit too up-and-down throughout his career so far.

Simons is still just 25 and a good player. The problem for Portland, though, is that he only has a year and a half left on the rookie extension that he signed back in 2021. The organization has also made several investments into on-ball backcourt players, including Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe. This might be the time to try to cash in on Simons, but he makes $25.9 million this season, followed by $27.7 million next season. Those are hefty numbers. Simons’ trade value will likely be determined by how he plays over the next couple of weeks. Should the Blazers try to cash in now? Should they try to extend this summer? They have a lot of questions on a messy roster moving forward.

One of the best shooters in NBA history, Kennard is back to his normal self, drilling 46.6 percent of his shots from distance this season. Over his career, Kennard has made 44 percent from 3, and since 2020, he’s hit 46 percent from 3. He hits them off movement and off pull-ups. He can legitimately play on-ball and off-the-ball. He’s a valuable offensive player who has real defensive question marks because of his lack of size and length, but he’s super smart and at least knows where to be in terms of rotating and scrambling around. Kennard is also on an expiring contract and makes $9.3 million. The Grizzlies have already considered moving him once this year in a deal for Dorian Finney-Smith, although that fell apart when the Lakers topped the Memphis offer. It feels like Memphis won’t just move him to move him, but if the Grizzlies can find an upgrade on the defensive end that gives them another longer, bigger body on the wing to guard tough assignments in the playoffs, he could be moved.

The Lakers traded D’Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets in December in a deal to acquire Dorian Finney-Smith. It’s a trade that made a ton of sense for both teams, as the Nets cashed in on the Finney-Smith asset and acquired draft capital. Now, they can try to turn around and move Russell if they wish. His contract cannot be aggregated again this year, but if a team is looking for a real guard, he could provide value.

Russell, however, is a polarizing player. Offensively, he’s typically a sharpshooter from distance who can get them up from volume and who can run ball screens and make plays for his teammates. Defensively, you need to hide him because he struggles to stay in front of opposing players and can get lost off the ball. The issue for Russell this year is that the shot-making hasn’t really been there. He’s made only 32.8 percent of his 3s. Teams still guard him out there because of his long track record, but if the shot isn’t actually falling, he’s not a particularly valuable player.

He is a free agent this summer with an $18.7 million expiring contract. Maybe another team is willing to pass on more expiring money while also handing over pick capital to get a deal done to get more shot-creation upside from the backcourt.

Brogdon is on an expiring deal. He’s only played 18 games this year — and injury concerns are always an issue for Brogdon, given that he’s only topped 40 games once in the last four years and has only topped 60 twice in the last eight years — but when he’s been out there, he’s been a perfectly useful starter for the Wizards. As you read this, he’s dealing with a foot injury that has held him out of games recently. He’s averaging 13.8 points and finishing well on the interior, plus he rarely turns the ball over. He’s also a career 39 percent 3-point shooter, so you can rely on him there even if he’s made only 31.3 percent so far on limited volume. The issue with Brogdon comes on defense. He generally knows where he has to be and has extremely long arms and a strong physical frame, but he doesn’t have the quickness anymore to deal with particularly quick backcourt players.

Brogdon is owed $22.5 million this year, which is a large number for a player of his skill at this point. On a good team, he probably profiles best as a seventh man. But a few teams out there could use a steadying bench presence as a guard and might be willing to swap another deal or two along with a couple of second-rounders to get him. My best guess is that this turns into a buyout situation, though, with Brogdon’s foot now being an issue.

One of the more creative scoring guards off the bench in recent NBA history, Clarkson is averaging 16 points per game. However, the issue for the Jazz is that his shooting has dived. He’s only shooting 41.3 percent from the field. Before a recent plantar fascia injury, he had turned around his shooting from distance but is still only at 33.9 percent on the season. This also comes a year after he set a career low in terms of his efficiency while shooting 41.3 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from 3. He is known as an elite locker-room presence but has never been a particularly conscientious defender.

Clarkson is only making $14.1 million this year and $14.3 million next year, so it’s possible that a team desperate for scoring could think he could help off the bench if it believes that his foot injury can heal in time. Undoubtedly, teams will be watching Clarkson to see if he can get back to the right level. If he doesn’t, it feels like it’ll be difficult to move him as the Jazz look to embrace some of their younger guards like Keyonte George and Isaiah Collier.

Micic is thought to be available from the Hornets as an extra ballhandler for someone who needs shot creation. One of the best players in Europe for five years before his decision to sign with Oklahoma City in 2023, Micic’s game just hasn’t quite worked out in the way that was hoped. He was traded to the Hornets last winter in a deal to bring Gordon Hayward to the Thunder. In 58 games for Charlotte, he’s showcased the deft passing touch that was anticipated, and he’s generally sharp in ball screens. However, his defense has been nonexistent at this level, and he hasn’t found a consistent way to score. He’s shooting just 33 percent from 3 this season and has an overall field goal percentage below 35 percent. He is comfortable organizing an offense, but he looks like a player more well-suited to the FIBA game. If the Hornets can find a taker, it would make sense to move on. I’m just not sure that will happen given that he is owed $7.7 million this season and has a team option for $8.1 million next year.

Springer is a little-used guard on the Celtics in the fourth year of his rookie-scale contract. He’s played in 19 games this year, giving an immense amount of on-ball defensive effort but he struggles to do anything on offense.

Why is Springer here? Because he makes $4 million in that final year of his deal. The Celtics have a couple of options here. They could try to use that $4 million to swap Springer for another vet along with picks whom they think might help them. Or they could use Springer’s deal to save something in the ballpark of $20 million in luxury tax payments and salary by dropping him into another team’s cap space or a trade exception with draft picks. Given how little he’s been used this year, it feels like a no-brainer for Boston’s ownership.

Hyland had a nice start to his career back when he was a Denver Nugget, making the All-Rookie team. However, it’s been a tough go since then. He can get buckets, averaging seven points in 11 minutes per game this season. The question is whether he can get them efficiently, as he’s made under 40 percent of his shots throughout his career. And the less said about his game on defense, the better.

So why is he here? Hyland makes $4.2 million in the final year of his rookie deal. The Clippers are currently $2.5 million away from getting underneath the luxury tax threshold. Someone on the Clippers is going to get moved to get under that bill. Hyland is the easiest player to make that happen with.